Relic a Guitar on Purpose?

[Rock Chalk]

Jesus that's fucking ugly.

What? You wouldn't pay $6K for it?

 

[Warmart]

I reliced my ibanez prestige RG last year by doing a pickup swap on a Friday evening. Wtf was I thinking? I'm generally a total zombie on Friday nights!

Do not use an Ibanez multitool to screw in new direct mount pickups, OMG.

 

[Eagle]

There is nothing wrong with relic guitars for me as long as they look credible. If they are done well they are a way of owning a gigable vintage looking piece that plays great and is easily replaced.

 

[Eagle]

Which is what?
One is obvious.

 

[laxu]

There is nothing wrong with relic guitars for me as long as they look credible. If they are done well they are a way of owning a gigable vintage looking piece that plays great and is easily replaced.

I see different approaches to this:

1. Try to make it look like natural wear. Namely add wear in places where it would occur like bumping your headstock, hardware being tarnished, a bit of paint coming off around the arm rest and belt buckle rash in the back.
2. Just make it look cool.

This Tele that I have falls into category #2 IMO. The hardware wear is in no way realistic, unless we are talking about "spent some time in a swamp", but it looks really nice. Similarly the body wear isn't quite where real wear would occur. "Abandoned farm" is probably what I'd call this look.

Where it all goes sideways is when the relic effect doesn't look good. Guitars that look like they've had a battle with a belt sander are the most glaring example. Doing it well is an art form in itself and I can understand why some relic guitars are expensive. Until someone creates a relic making robot that's likely to be the case.

PS. I love that Tele to bits, it sounds fantastic with the Cavalier pickups I slapped into it and is always a joy to play. Never thought I'd be a Tele guy.

 

[SillyOctpuss]

There is nothing wrong with relic guitars for me as long as they look credible. If they are done well they are a way of owning a gigable vintage looking piece that plays great and is easily replaced.

I'm not against relics but some of them are so overdone they look shite. I'm also not a fan of how the Fender custom shop strips all the lacquer off their necks and you end up with that grey finish like the one you posted above. I'd rather have a guitar that looked like genuine play wear rather than something that looks like it's been dragged behind a truck.

 

[Eagle]

I see different approaches to this:

1. Try to make it look like natural wear. Namely add wear in places where it would occur like bumping your headstock, hardware being tarnished, a bit of paint coming off around the arm rest and belt buckle rash in the back.
2. Just make it look cool.

This Tele that I have falls into category #2 IMO. The hardware wear is in no way realistic, unless we are talking about "spent some time in a swamp", but it looks really nice. Similarly the body wear isn't quite where real wear would occur. "Abandoned farm" is probably what I'd call this look.

Where it all goes sideways is when the relic effect doesn't look good. Guitars that look like they've had a battle with a belt sander are the most glaring example. Doing it well is an art form in itself and I can understand why some relic guitars are expensive. Until someone creates a relic making robot that's likely to be the case.

PS. I love that Tele to bits, it sounds fantastic with the Cavalier pickups I slapped into it and is always a joy to play. Never thought I'd be a Tele guy.

I don’t think that is a relic, it’s just a cool finish. The relic guitars I hate are the belt sander caster shit like Nash .

 

[Eagle]

Nash;

 

[nicolasrivera]

What are all your thoughts on "non natural" relicing of a guitar. I was browsing reverb and always had my eye on the fender American vintage ii line when I stumbled across this listing.

I'm not relic expert but this one is a big no from me. Would you all ever consider buying a guitar that was made a relic through nails or keys etc

Fender American Vintage II '61 Stratocaster 2022 - Present - Olympic White https://reverb.com/item/81634748?ut...are&utm_campaign=listing&utm_content=81634748

I mostly just feel bad for the guitar at this point

One of my first LPs, a 2008 R8, i did extensive relic to it and was able to sell it for almost 3 times the price I paid for it. So people really love relics and will pay for good relics, just not all people like them.

This is my current LP, completely relic.

 

[Achilles]

They can be done tastefully or terribly.
Same goes for bling guitars.

 

[FuzzyAce]

One of my first LPs, a 2008 R8, i did extensive relic to it and was able to sell it for almost 3 times the price I paid for it. So people really love relics and will pay for good relics, just not all people like them.

This is my current LP, completely relic.

It has that "I've never taken a bath or cleaned my guitar" look.
Well done.

 

[FuzzyAce]

I see different approaches to this:

1. Try to make it look like natural wear. Namely add wear in places where it would occur like bumping your headstock, hardware being tarnished, a bit of paint coming off around the arm rest and belt buckle rash in the back.
2. Just make it look cool.

This Tele that I have falls into category #2 IMO. The hardware wear is in no way realistic, unless we are talking about "spent some time in a swamp", but it looks really nice. Similarly the body wear isn't quite where real wear would occur. "Abandoned farm" is probably what I'd call this look.

Where it all goes sideways is when the relic effect doesn't look good. Guitars that look like they've had a battle with a belt sander are the most glaring example. Doing it well is an art form in itself and I can understand why some relic guitars are expensive. Until someone creates a relic making robot that's likely to be the case.

PS. I love that Tele to bits, it sounds fantastic with the Cavalier pickups I slapped into it and is always a joy to play. Never thought I'd be a Tele guy.

We call that the Shabby Chic look.

 

[SillyOctpuss]

Nash;
View attachment 21941

That's one of the worst relics I've ever seen.

 

[Eagle]

That's one of the worst relics I've ever seen.

They manage that consistently. One four year old with a hammer and another with a belt sander.,

 

[SillyOctpuss]

They manage that consistently. One four year old with a hammer and another with a belt sander.,

I've not had much experience with bash guitars tbh. A friend of mine has a 60s nash strat that's a fantastic guitar but it wasn't reliced. It was basically a NOS finish when he got it. That's my only experience of playing a nash.

I've never really looked at their relics but had a look after you posted that one above and from what I can see they're uniformly awful.

 

[Frodebro]

They manage that consistently. One four year old with a hammer and another with a belt sander.,

A discussion on the merits of that guitar would be grossly incomplete without mentioning meth.

 

[Alex Kenivel]

Nash;
View attachment 21941

Why does this look like AI did it?

 

[FuzzyAce]

Why does this look like AI did it?

AL must have been drunk that day.

Or do you mean Ai?
Virtual drunk.

 

[Frodebro]

AL must have been drunk that day.

Or do you mean Ai?
Virtual drunk.

See, it this were the eighties we would just assume that cocaine was involved and call it good.

 

[FuzzyAce]

I know I talk shit, so here's my unintentional relic. Went to strip it down, then started to scrape it... but then said -- "oh, that looks ugly but kinda cool too."